Market Basket: New downtown district good 'first step'

Readers weigh in on Common Council decision.

South Bend officials this week made a move to encourage new downtown restaurant development.

Some call it a first step.

Many believe the newly created riverfront district will attract new businesses, especially those wanting to take advantage of the liquor license cost incentive.

Most believe there is room for more restaurants, especially those specializing in seafood and offering more East Bank outdoor dining and entertainment options.

Market Basket readers weighed in on riverfront development during Tuesday's live chat. Read the full transcript at www.southbendtribune.com/chats. Our next live chat is scheduled for July 10.

DM: Are mouths watering at the prospect of such a cheap license and the fact that riverfront restaurant/bar development is sorely underdeveloped downtown? Or do developers see downtown as oversaturated with restaurants and don't see a profit in dumping money into a new riverfront construction/renovation?

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Heidi Prescott: All in all, the creation of the district seems like a good thing. It offers an enticement. An advantage. A reason to lure someone downtown that was thinking about downtown but needed that extra nudge. That could help continue the positive momentum that many see and believe is happening in the city center. I think developers still see downtown having room for more restaurants and entertainment venues. Time will tell whether their mouths are actually watering.

Pat from N.C.: As a former South Bend east-sider and downtown shopper, I'm elated at the news of the riverfront development district. I frequently return to South Bend to visit my family and love riding my bike along the river trails.

What's nice about this riverfront district is that hopefully more restaurants will open along this area. If so, without a doubt I'll be returning by foot in the evenings to eat there and enjoy a beer (draft, please, and hopefully one from a local micro-brewery). The liquor license incentive is a sound idea, nudging prospective restaurant entrepreneurs into going ahead with opening a spot. Great idea, city council!

Guest: I love to eat by the water. Was sorry to see the Wharf close.

Heidi Prescott: I have heard some area residents wonder if there is enough of a residential component downtown to warrant additional restaurant and bar development. While I think additional space made available for downtown residents could be a positive, I'm not sure how much it is required for anticipated commercial development to happen. Thoughts about this?

DM: For the small steps downtown is making currently, I don't think the residential item is that much of a factor right now. Any shortcomings that do exist, I think are going to be greatly satisfied by the increased traffic and people with the presence of St. Joe High School, the creeping of Eddy Street and upscale professor houses toward downtown, and the residents moving into Eddy Street town homes.

In the long run, to make downtown what we all want it to be, more residential is certainly needed beyond what I just mentioned. What David Mathews is doing, though, is a great step in that direction.

Brian: See what happens when government-imposed business-related costs are reduced or eliminated? You get growth.

Pat from N.C.: Another thing South Bend has going for it is its sidewalks. Makes it a walkable town. Cities striving to become livable cities in hopes of attracting new residents are one step ahead if its residents can walk from place to place. Foot traffic may very well help these river district restaurants.

Heidi Prescott's column runs on Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays. When she's not shopping, contact her at hprescott@sbtinfo.com or 574-235-6070. You can also talk retail at Facebook.com/thebasket and at Twitter.com/marketbasket.